Four in battle to be Met chief face first round of interviews

THE first round of interviews to pick the next head of Scotland Yard will take place next week.

The shortlisted candidates for the £253,000-a-year post will go before a Home Office panel on Monday.

The session is the first in a round of up to four interviews the front-runners face. The successful candidate is expected to be named before the end of this month.

The four candidates are Sir Hugh Orde, 50, chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, Bernard Hogan-Howe, 51, the chief constable of Merseyside, Sir Paul Stephenson, 55, the Met's acting Commissioner, and Sir Paul Scott-Lee, 54, head of the West Midlands constabulary.

A week later they will face a Metropolitan Police Authority panel.

After the two series of interviews, two names will be given to Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith. She will also have to consult Mayor Boris Johnson. Both are understood to have the right to interview the candidates.

So far, Sir Hugh is considered the favourite because of his track record as a senior officer in the Met and his experience in Northern Ireland.

Sir Paul Stephenson, who was previous Commissioner Sir Ian Blair's deputy, is said to be the favoured choice of Mr Johnson. But his chances are thought to have been damaged by his authorisation of the arrest of Tory MP Damian Green.

Mr Hogan-Howe, who has won praise for his "total war on crime" in Merseyside, is also a strong contender.

Sir Paul Scott-Lee is the only candidate never to have worked at Scotland Yard and could be seen as a "new broom" at a force that has been beset with in-fighting in recent years.

The Home Office panel is chaired by Home Office permanent secretary Sir David Normington and includes the director general of the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism, Charles Farr, and Kit Malthouse, the deputy mayor for policing.